The Shooting Star
by xAngel0ftheWind
Summary: Sen knew he was a dreaming. But in the dream, the girl was crying so hard, he didn't know why. Sen wanted to wrap his arms around her to tell her everything would be okay. But everything was not okay. That was one thing he knew. Rated 'T' for language? lo
1. Finally a Hermit

Before the story starts, I would like to say that this is my **first **MapleStory story... well, not really... but still.

I think this is not one of the best stories in the world.

My apologies; but there isn't much a 12 year old can do, huh? YEAH IM 12 GOT A FUCKING PROBLEM WITH THAT, BITCHES?! Ehehehe... Anyways, enjoy.

* * *

The Shooting Star

She was crying. She was crying so hard, he wanted to wrap his arms around her, to make sure she would stop, but he couldn't, he could only watch in sadness as the girl cried.

He felt like he had to save her or she would do the wrong thing. But he had no idea who the girl was and still he wanted to make her stop and tell her everything was okay.

But everything wasn't okay. That was one thing he knew.

* * *

Sen woke up. He had had the dream again. This time, it was the same girl, and he could feel the danger more clearly. He knew he had to save her. But he didn't know who the girl was. He didn't even know he kept having those damn dreams anyways. Sen swore under his breath. 

Sen got dressed and stepped out of his apartment in Kerning. He yawned and glanced at the calender.

_Oh god, _he thought uneasily. _Today is the hermit test. _

He yawned again and rubbed his eyes. Today was the test where he was going to be tested to qualify for a hermit. He wondered if he could pass. He wondered if he could even survive.

Sen went outside. It was the same old city he always knew, a red sun and the city streets loud as people chattered away. He took a deep breath, knowing today was a new day. But he couldn't shake off the feeling that the girl had to be saved. Sen shoved the thought at the back of his mind, feeling kind of bad, and jumped down seven stories.

He was a thief, after all. Duhhh.

Sen knew he had to get ready for the test. It started at 10 o' clock.

He glanced at his watch. It was 9:58. He gasped and forced back a scream. He froze for a second, then burst out with amazing speed.

Sen ran into the Dark Lord's lair, pushing people out of his way. He didn't even bother to say sorry.

"I'm here," gasped Sen. "I- I'm here."

"Welcome," said the Dark Lord. "Sen, correct? I remember you. Well, here is your first assignment: go kill my clone. Go into the dungeon. He will be there. If you defeat him, you can come back for the second part."

Sen bowed to the Dark Lord and went out of his lair. Sen recharged his stars and looked at Kerning City. He knew this was the last time he might look at this city as an assassin. The next time he'll be a hermit.

Sen cautiously went into the dungeon. The Dark Lord's clone was there, as promised. At once, the Dark Lord's clone attacked Sen. Sen barely dodged the attack in time. At once Sen realized this was the REAL DEAL, and if he didn't give everything he had, he would die. So this is the stage were his friends had died at.

Sen dodged another attack and then changed to the offensive. He threw his stars and dodged another one.

The clone seemed to know where and when he was going to attack. It looked exactly like the Dark Lord, except it had a long, dull stare. It disturbed Sen slightly.

Sen gritted his teeth and dodged another star. This was tiring.

"Oh, damn." he sighed. He ran around the clone, throwing stars from the behind, aiming at his head. The clone disappeared in a second, and Sen looked around wildly, thinking, _Where'd he go –?_

The Dark Lord appeared behind Sen, and Sen whirled around to look at him, even though his mind was screaming, _Run away, you asshole!_

The Dark Lord's fist was heading for his stomach – _Oh god, my stomach – _thought Sen in a split second, then felt a force punch him in the stomach. He felt the impact. Sen felt himself fly through the air, thinking, _What the hell just happened?_ Sen smashed into a wall, and fell down.

Sen coughed, tasting a little blood in his mouth, and then saw blood on the floor. Sen felt the side of his head. There was a warm gooey liquid running down, and he cringed when he felt a gash running from his ear to his neck. Blood dripped onto the floor.

_Must of have happened when I hit the wall, _looking back and grimaced. There was a large dent in the wall, and Sen looked at it, silently thinking, _I made __**that?**_

Sen turned around just in time to see the Dark Lord rushing toward him at an unimaginable speed; _There isn't enough time – I can't dodge it – wait – maybe if I go under – then I could –_

Sen swiftly went under the Dark Lord's arm and punched him in the gut.

The Dark Lord flew through the air, Sen surprising himself with his own power. The Dark Lord's clone hit the ground, not moving, and for a second Sen thought he had defeated the clone.

As the Dark Lord staggered up, Sen felt his vision blur.

_Damn, _he thought, white blobs clogging up his vision, _I've lost too much blood._

"Only one attack left," he said aloud, panting.

_Come on Sen, _he thought as he put his hand to his throwing stars pocket, _You've been training for this moment for such a long time. Since the time you've been a little kid, right? Right – here goes – _

Sen picked up two stars and threw them, hoping they would hit their target because he put the rest of his strength in it.

The Dark Lord dodged the two stars with grace, Sen on the other side of the cave, breathing heavily.

_No... way... It didn't hit..._

Sen felt his vision blur again, and he leaned against the pillar for support.

_This is it, _he thought, watching blood run down his shirt. _It's over. I can't go on like this, I'm dead. Why did I ever sign up?_

The clone was speeding toward him now, knife aloft, aiming for Sen's heart.

Sen felt a jolt of pain, and for a second, he was happy that once the Dark Lord's clone hit him, it would be gone – it would all be gone – he would have never existed – _I wonder if anyone would remember me? Like that girl in my dreams?_

Suddenly, the Dark Lord seemed to go in slow motion.

_It can't end like this, _he panted, standing up. _I have to save her, I have to save my princess, even if she doesn't exist, even if she was never real... It isn't going to end here._

He came back to the real world – everything seemed so clear now – so clear, the Dark Lord clone, the knife, he was going to die, he didn't care, it was all clear now. He didn't even know what was clear. Maybe it was because his vision was back to normal, maybe it was because all the pain was gone, he didn't know.

_Maybe I'm going mad, _Sen thought, as he thrust a knife into the clone.

The clone disappeared in a puff of smoke. After the smog cleared, Sen found a necklace. It was his ticket to proove he had defeated the clone.

_Thank god, _he thought, climbing out of the cave. _It's over._

Sen appeared at the Dark Lord's corrider after cleaning himself up at the hospital. The doctor gave him some medications even though Sen politely refused.

He walked along the hall, opening the trap door to the Dark Lord's room, hearing pieces of a conversation.

"– you understand? Make sure she doesn't kill herself."

Sen's suddenly had the goosebumps. What did he just say?

"Yes, master."

A theif went back up, eyeing Sen for half a second, and exited the lair. Sen felt himself shaking, but he knew he must present himself to the Dark Lord.

"Master, I have killed your clone sucessfully." Sen bowed. He handed the necklace over.

"Good job Sen. Now for part two, it will be a written test."

The Dark Lord handed Sen a piece of paper. Sen finished the test in about three minutes.

"I should really make this harder," muttered the Dark Lord. He cleared his throat. "Good job, Sen. I promote you to a hermit. You will be an excellent one."

"Thank you, my lord."

"I grant you these skills with my powers."

Sen felt a rush of knowledge flow through him and got up.

"Thank you, my lord."

The Dark Lord teleported him out.

Sen wondered what the Dark Lord was talking about...

"_- you understand?Make sure she doesn't kill herself. _

Nah, it couldn't be the girl in the dream...

Could it...?

* * *

Terisa shivered. She did not like this room. 

She was going to be tortured. She knew it.

She was going to die.

Terisa remembered that terrible day...

Her family were on vacation in Orbis. They were a happy family; Mom and Dad and obnoxious little brother.

Everything was perfect. Terisa was going to be a preist and her brother a newbie mage. Mom was a preist and Dad was a hermit. Everyone was happy...

Her family asked if she wanted to walk in a park. Terisa politely refused. Her family went on the walk.

When they didn't come back, Terisa began to get worried. She went into the park and was horrified by what she saw. Her family lay in a bloody pool, the grass was dyed in a beautiful and horrifying deep red.

Terisa fell on the grass and felt people crowd around her, murmuring things she could not hear. The next thing she knew was that she was in this cold and lonely dungeon. From what she could hear from the outside, this was probably Kerning.

She wondered if she could ever be rescued.

Terisa decided that she would kill herself. Everything was dark and gloomy. There was this giant pit, she wanted to fall into it and be nothing, and fade away. There, she could see her family again. She would be happy. Well, she wasn't sure about the happy part. But she wanted to see her Mom and Dad and her little brother again.

As she was about to kill herself, the guard came and yelled at her, shaking his fist and calling the other gaurds. As the gaurd crowded around her, taking away the knife, she was thinking that only one second of hesitation had kept her away from her goal.

Terisa shivered in this cold chamber and cried herself to sleep, missing her family.

* * *

Sen was practicing his new skills. He flexed his arm and wondered what he should do now. 

Sen suddenly had a feeling. It was an enormous powerful feeling of... sadness. It was so powerful that Sen wanted to cry out. Then, as suddenly as it came, it was gone. Sen was left shaking on the street of Kerning. He had no idea what just happened, so he decided to see the Kerning preist for details. It was a strange feeling, like he had forgotten something he shouldn't have.

Sen walked in the priest's house. It was full of orbs and pieces of paper. He looked more closely at one and stumbled back, realizing the writing was made in blood. He felt like throwing up, but went further in, not looking at the skulls that seemed to be ominously looking at him.

"Hello, my good man." the preist said. No one knew what his real name was.

"Hello," said Sen, seating himself in the chair across from the preist.

"Do you want me to read your fortune?" he said, rubbing his necklace between his fingers. Sen knew this question seemed innocent enough, but he felt the hairs on his neck stand up.

"Y-yes." he managed to choke out. "Yes."

"Not everyone is happy with their fortune." the preist said, now shuffling a card deck of strange and mystifying pictures. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Sen said, sitting straighter up.

"This will be free," the preist murmured.

The preist then mumbled some words that Sen could not recongnize. The preist then burned some papers and came back with a burnt paper.

"I will read your fortune." he said.

"Ah... this sign. You will have a long life. That's good, very good." the preist said, smiling slightly.

"Oh, my. This... a great adventure is coming closer." he said, shaking his head. He looked at the next sign and his hands flew to his mouth. "Oh, my. My dear boy," he said, barely a whisper. "The next part of your life will be dangerous. It will be full of pain and sorrow, betrayal, and death. You might... die."

Sen wanted to scream that he was lying. But somehow he knew that he was telling the truth.

As Sen left the preists house, he wondered how possibly the preist could know his name. He had no time to wonder. He knew something bad was coming...

* * *

Thanks for reading. Read chapter two. Gimme reviews. 

Reeeeeevvvvvvviiiiiiieeeeeeewwwwwwwwwsssssssssz. Plawks. Those keep me going. By the way, how do you feel about chapter one so far. Should I continue? Come on. Tell me please. :P


	2. Corrupted!

Shooting Star : Chapter Two

Sen was asleep, rolling around on his pillow, dreaming.

"Hey baby," he mumbled, kissing his pillow. "Come here... Uhn huh..." he rolled off the bed, hitting the floor.

"Oh f–!" he yelled, sitting up. He rubbed his head, wincing. "It was such a nice dream too," Sen added dreamily. He wondered why he felt so confused. There was something important...

_Oh yeah, I'm a hermit now! _thought Sen, getting up and posing in front of his mirror. He laughed, even though he knew no one could hear him.

As he changed into his clothes, Sen had the feeling that someone was watching him. He looked around cautiously, stuffing on his t-shirt.

Sen heard the curtains flutter even though the window wasn't open. That gave it away.

"Who's there? I know you're there," he said, loudly, not turning around the face the window. Sen felt some strange waves radiating from his closet. Sen kicked the closet door, ripping it, and a boy with short purple hair appeared. Sen aimed a punch at his face, but he disappeared instantly.

He suddenly felt something hit his neck. Everything went black.

* * *

When Sen woke up, everything was black. It was stuffy and hard to breath.

_Maybe I'm dead, _Sen thought drowsily. As Sen fumbled around, he realized he wasn't. Sen was tied up around the wrists and his feet, and was apparently in a bag of some sort. He arms were tied around his back. He could hear voices.

"– I mean, seriously, who would've thought?"

"I know! I can't believe he would go that far."

"What a loser!"  
"Psh."

Sen heard three different voices, two females and one male. He was wondering why they had knocked him out and kidnapped him.  
_They can't kidnap a hermit! _he thought angrily, kicking the bag furiously. _I'm special! I can't die here!!!_

"Huh? Did you just see the bag move?" a female voice said.

"No," said the male voice. "I didn't. The knockout powder should've knocked him out for a day."

_Wait, I'm a thief, _Sen thought. _I can escape from these stupid ropes around my wrists._

Sen tried to release his wrists, but there was some sort of a force that kept them together.

_Shit, _he thought, frustrated. _They have a mage with them. I can't undo a spell._

"Yo! Let me outta here, bitches!" screamed Sen, kicking wildly.

"Oh, teehee! He's awake!" giggled a girl.

Sen felt light shine on him, he could see the sky, and Sen breathed in a breath of fresh air. He felt the ropes around his wrists and feet undone, and Sen flexed them. He looked around and saw two girls and a boy.

The girls were about his age, both wearing high leveled mage armor. The boy seemed more serious and he was a bandit or a chief bandit. Sen didn't know.

"Hi, I'm Joyce," said the girl with light blue hair, giggling. "And this is Iris! My friend!" Joyce pointed to the mage girl standing next to her.

"Sup," said Iris. The boy coughed loudly.

"Oh, uh! Right. Uhm. This is Leo! He's a chief bandit. Oh, and by the way, I'm a priest and Iris is a mage! Ice Lightning! Third job already!" she laughed, lightly punching Iris in the arm.

"Uh, okay. Nice to meet you all," said Sen, getting up. "But first, why the hell did you kidnap me?!" Sen demanded.

"Woah, woah," chuckled Leo. "Let's not be hasty. Sorry, but we're on a mission."

Leo held up a card, which said, 'Leo Sui, Ellania, Leaf Clan, Age 17, Class: Chief Bandit.'

"Oh! I have one too!" said Joyce excitedly. She raised a bright blue card, shoving it in front of Sen's face. Sen backed away.

"Uh, ok. 'Joyce Chen, Ellania, Leaf Clan, Age, uh, 17. Class: Priest.'" he read.

"Tee hee!" Joyce giggled. Iris held up hers too, which said, 'Iris Shung, Ellania, Sky Clan, Age 16, Class: Mage Ice/Lightning.'

"Nice to meet you all, but, first off," Sen said, "Your mission is to _kidnap _me?"

"Uh, basically," said Joyce, giggling uncontrollably. Iris whacked Joyce in the head, and Joyce shut up.

"Well," said Leo, with the air of authority. "You know. We have a mission. It is to kidnap you, yes, and it's because of your safety. Reasons because _we, _people from the other side of the continent, were assigned to kidnap you because your town is corrupted."

"C – corrupted?" Sen sputtered. "How dare you –!?"

"Sorry," interuppted Leo. "But it's true. You see, a clan called the Snow Clan was destroyed years ago, by yours truly." _what does yours truly mean??_Joyce coughed loudly. "Okay, okay, fine. By my group of friends called the 'Dark Bandits'. But that's history. Anyways, we destroyed this clan because they were calling demons from the other side to take over Victoria Island. We weren't sure if we killed them off for good, but there was a slight chance that the leader is still alive." At this point, Leo was drawing on his fingers. He drew horns and a devil's tail on his index finger and the words 'Dark Bandits & Co.' on his thumb. Then he made them bump into each other, as if it were a battle, and in the end, Leo drew scribbles over the devil finger.

"But now, we have some very strong evidence that the leader of the Snow Clan has taken over Kerning City. We have no idea who's on their side and who's still normal. After inspecting the city throughly, we knew that everyone in Kerning City was brain washed, except you, because you were apparently fighting a clone somewhere out of Kerning City." said Leo. "And so, to prevent more harm, we errected a temporary barrier outside of Kerning City so no one can get in or out. It won't last for long, the Snow Clan is strong. Even thought they got a good beating from _mua. _We kidnapped you because you were the only one left."

Leo stopped speaking. Sen was still.

"Okay, so basically," said Sen slowly, "Theres a group of people called the Snow Clan, and you defeated them several years ago, but they somehow managed to revive. And now they're in _my _city, brain washing people to become their slaves, and the only reason I wasn't brainwashed was because I was outside of Kerning City. And now everyone is a mindless zombie like in the movies, and you have errected a temporary barrier so that people can't get in or out of Kerning. So more people won't become a zombie. Now you have kidnapped me because of my safety."

"Well, frankly, yes," said Iris. "But we have another part of our mission."

"You see, Ellania is a center for magic. But lately, we've been receiving very strong magic waves from Kerning. There is probably someone in Kerning that has extremely powerful magic. Or something," said Joyce, "But it's abnormal. These waves match the power of Grendel the Really Old. He's the best wizard in the world, by the way," Joyce added as Sen surpressed a laugh at 'Grendel the Really Old.'

"They sent us to observe what was happening, so we went. And what we found was the whole city brainwashed, people moving like zombies, except for you, because we found you running on top of buildings at top speed. We couldn't pinpoint the magic wave source, there probably is a barrier protecting it. Then this morning, we set up a temporary barrier and we knocked you out and took you with us."

_Extremely powerful magic waves, _thought Sen slowly. _Hmm. I wonder if it's...?_

"I get it," said Sen. "So you were told to investigate really strong magic waves coming from the city."

The three people nodded.  
"And then, you found a city of zombies, and me, who wasn't harmed. Now you suspect it is the doing of the evil clan called the Snow Clan, whom you have defeated several years ago. Then you tried to find the magic waves source, but it kept moving, or something, but you couldn't find it."  
The three people nodded again.

"Hmm. I get it now," said Sen. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go to Ellania. You need help with this stuff right?"

Iris beamed at Sen. "Yeah!"  
"By the way," said Sen. "How did you carry me if I was in a bag?"

"I dragged you," smirked Leo. "Now let's get going."

* * *

Man, that was sooo confusing. Hehehe. 

Reviews, please. Thank you.


	3. So This is Ellinia

"Excellent," murmured the Dark Lord. "Is everything in order?"

"Yes, it is, Dark Lord." said a shadowy figure. As the figure stepped into the light, you could see that the figure has short black hair. He had the aura of menance, and if you observed closely enough, you could see that he had pointed ears.  
"Very good," said the Dark Lord. "Chung, what about the tests on our prisoner?"

"It's faring well. We are meeting our expectations." drawled Chung.  
"I see..."

* * *

Sen had never travelled to Ellania. He heard it was a very serene and had a lot of plants. But when he finally arrived, he couldn't describe his awe. 

Sen looked up only to find houses built on huge trees; the trees themselves seemed alive. He stood there, gaping, squinting to see the top. The branches swayed in the wind, and sunlight streamed through the leaves. It looked like one beautiful treehouse utopia. The air was fresher here, too.

"Woah," sighed Sen, looking around, drinking in the view. "This place is soooo awesome."  
"I know, I know," grumbled Leo. "Now let's go see Grendel the Really Old." Sen laughed insanely from hearing the words 'Grendel the Really Old'. Leo shot him a murderous look, and Sen abrutly stopped laughing.

Leo dropped the bags, and for a second Sen thought that maybe they were taking an elevator or something; but Leo grabbed a rope that was hanging next to him.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go." Leo asked.

"See you guys at the top," yelled Joyce, teleporting layer after layer of branches.

"What?!" exclaimed Sen. "You're not telling me we're going to _climb _up there, are we?!"

"Of course we are," snapped Leo. "There's no other way. If you want to crawl through the underbrush, well, be my guest. But this is the fastest way."

Sen sighed. "How the hell do you get used to this?"

"Where do you think these abs came from?" smirked Leo, climbing up the rope. Sen followed hesitantly.

It seemed like hours and a million ropes before they finally stopped climbing.

"A – Are we there yet?" panted Sen, sitting on the branch.  
"Yeah. Well, Grendel lives on the top," explained Leo. "But we're almost there, come on, let's go."

Sen climbed another rope, and a huge mansion towered in front of him. It was white with plants curling around it, it looked almost ancient. It had a rainbow of jewels on it, covered with a touch of gold. If you looked closely, you could see faint paintings of exotic flowers and strange animals.

As they opened the door, Sen saw an old man floating inside a circle. Inside a magic, blue, protective circle, the old man glanced warily at him. Joyce and Iris were sitting underneath him, bowing their heads in respect.

"Welcome to Ellania," said the old man, beckoning Sen to come closer. "I am Grendel the Really Old, but you may call me Grendel. I have heard about what has happened to your city. Tragic, tragic. Kerning City! The very heart of thieves. Where the great dwell. Very nice city; I have visited it before when I was young. Tragic that such a brain washing and attack has happened."

"Well, what should we do?" asked Sen. "I mean, there is nothing I can do, I'm only one person–"

"Do not say that!" snapped Grendel. "Even one man has great power inside of him!"  
Sen shut up immediately, knowing that this was one man not to be trifled with. Joyce and Iris shot him looks that read _Shut – the – hell – up – now!_

"Now." said Grendel slowly. "I heard that this might be the work of the Snow Clan."

"Yes," said Leo. "We have found traces of their aura there."

"I see," said Grendel gravely. "Then this is more dangerous that I have thought. If the Dark Lord is working with them, then there might not be a way to defeat them."

"What?!" sputtered Sen. "But – what?"

"The Snow Clan is very powerful," said Grendel. "They are not be the fooled with. If they have sucessfully made a treaty with the Dark Lord, the Snow Clan will be very powerful indeed."

"I see," muttered Sen. _This might be harder than I thought..._

"Oh, have you discovered the source of the magic waves?" asked Grendel.

"No, sir." Iris said, shaking her head. "We could not pinpoint the source. There is probably a barrier around him or her, or maybe it."

"Hmm," said Grendel. "I see. Well, you are excused. I have to think about this."

All four of them left, standing outside, silent for a few minutes. Everyone was daydreaming on their own thoughts.

"So," said Joyce awkwardly, breaking the silence. Everyone jolted slightly. Now they had to come back to reality. Sen felt a small irritation. He was dreaming about the girl in his dreams.

"What should we do now?" Joyce asked, directing the question at Leo.

"Well," answered Leo. "I guess we should go back to my place and have some coffee."

"Sure!" exclaimed Joyce excitedly. "I love coffee –!"

"I know," said Leo, jumping down from the platform. "Follow me, guys!"  
Sen jumped after them, thinking about what he had heard.

_Hmm. So this Snow Clan is very powerful. I wonder if I am enough? I mean, I am a hermit. But still, I might never see my home ever again._

"Here!" yelled Leo, breaking Sen from his daydream again. Leo stopped in front a cozy little house, supported by the trunk of a giant tree.

"I'm home!" he screamed, kicking open the door.

"Leo!" a voice snapped, "Don't open the door like that! Oh, hello, Joyce! Iris!" the voice added as Joyce and Iris stepped into the doorway, the voice changing from bossy to serene with affection.

Sen came in. It was a normal little house with a circular roof, which gave it a more family–ish feeling. Sen felt a pang as he remembered that he had no family. They dumped him at the orphanage when he was very small, and ever since, he had been living by himself.He wondered if his parents were even alive. And if he ever met them, he would hug them and cry, then punch them in the face for abandoning him.

"Oh, hello! Who is this?" asked a lady who was standing next to the stove. She was tall and had Leo's eyes, but they were filled with sadness. She had black hair which hung loosely around her apron.

"This is Sen," muttered Leo, dropping himself in a chair. "We picked him up from Kerning."  
"Kerning!" she gasped, hands covering her mouth. "Oh, oh. How terrible."

"Yeah," said Sen, bowing his head down awkwardly. He didn't know what to say.

"Oh, you poor dear. My name is Reina. Stay here as long as you like." she said, clapsing her hand into Sen's.  
"Thank you." said Sen, smiling. He went further into the house.

There was another room behind the kitchen, it looked like the living room. It had a small television and green stuffed chairs with red and gold designs. There was a table in the middle and a faded fuzzy lime-green rug on the bottom.

_Hmmm, _thought Sen. _All the apartments in Kerning are gray. I should design my house like this._

Sen could hear Joyce and Iris giggling from the bedroom. He opened the door next to the television, and he found a small bedroom with two bunk beds.

Joyce and Iris were sitting on the opposite side of the bedroom, giggling furiously. A boy sat across from them, with long, brown hair. He looked exactly like Leo, except he was taller and older, maybe.

"Hm?" said the boy, eyes brightening with intrest as Sen opened the door. "Who's that?"

"Oh, him? That's Sen, we –" started Iris.

"I come from Kerning City. I was recently rescued by these people. My name is Sen." Sen cut in.

"Kerning, eh?" said the boy thoughtfully. "Hmm. Well anyways, my name is Derek. I'm Leo's older brother."

"Older brother, eh?" chuckled Sen. "You looked exactly like Leo."

"That's what everyone says," laughed Derek. "But we're two completely different people."

Sen sat down next to Derek. Iris and Joyce were still giggling.

"So," asked Derek casually. "Where's you ma' and pa'?"  
"I don't know," replied Sen bitterly. "I was left at an orphanage. I left when I was old enough and have been by myself ever since. I just became a hermit."  
"Hermit?!" shouted Derek suddenly, grabbing Sen by the shoulders and shaking him madly. "Are you like, serious?!"  
"Uh – well, er, yeah – I mean, yeah –" replied Sen, not knowing what to say.  
"Woah!" gasped Derek, releasing his grip on Sen. Sen rubbed his shoulders painfully. "Like, whoa, man. Hermits are like, rare, in Ellania. There's only two – oh wait, I think three... but anyways. A hermit, ehh?"

"Yeah," said Sen.

"Say," said Derek, grinning. "How about you fight with me? A little sparring match, huh? I mean, I'm a Chief Bandit, you know. The other type of thief."

"Sure." replied Sen automatically. Sen instantly regretted what he had said. Derek looked a lot stronger than him and probably had more experience.

"Sure!" said Derek, standing up and thumping Sen on the shoulder. "Fine then! After dinner." He stood up.

Iris and Joyce were talking excitedly about anime, and stopped when Derek stood up to leave. "Where are you going?" asked Joyce.

"Somewhere. See you round, ladies." Derek winked at them. Iris and Joyce laughed. Derek left the room.  
"Did you see that?" asked Joyce, flipping her hair. "He wants me. Ohh, I know he does."  
"Psh!" snorted Iris. "You're such a weirdo, Joyce!"  
"I double that," muttered Sen, leaving the room.

Sen did a little more exploring in Ellania. It was a big place, and before long, he was lost. He had no idea where he was.  
"Shit," he muttered, annoyed. "Gosh. What a confusing place."  
Sen sprinted to the top of a building and scanned the trees. He was looking for Leo's house.

"Where is it, where is it?!" he yelled, his voice echoing. _Is it? Is it? Is it?_

Sen finally found the house and jumped down to it. He burst through the door.  
"I – I'm back!" panted Sen. "Sorry!"  
Everyone was seated around the table, except for Iris and Joyce, who went home.  
"Welcome back, man!" laughed Derek, thumping the chair next to him. "Over here, bro!"  
"Hey," cut in Leo, who sounded annoyed. "I'm your _real _brother. Why don't you ever call me 'bro'?!"  
"Because," said Derek, grabbing the plate of mashed potatoes, "You don't call _your_ real brother 'bro'."

Sen sat down, not knowing what to do. He had only eaten by himself before, and he didn't know how to eat family – style.

"Want shum mashed potahtoes, Shen?" asked Derek through a mouth full of food.

"No thanks," laughed Sen.

Everyone was laughing, and was talking about their day. It had a warm cozy feeling to it, and Sen liked it. _So this is what family is like._

"Thank you for dinner," smiled Sen.

"Gosh," yawned Derek. "I'm tired. Okay, Sen, let's not battle today, I'm full of food." Derek grinned and patted his stomach.

"Fine with me," shrugged Sen.  
"Here, I'll show you your bed." said Leo, standing up. "Follow me."  
Sen got up from the table, thanking Reina, and followed Leo.  
"Sorry, it's one of those fold up beds that are like, in the closet," said Leo, scratching his head, embarassed. "But better than sleeping on the floor. Come on, get some sleep. We've got a big day ahead of us."

"Thanks," said Sen, climbing in bed. Leo turned off the lights.

"If you need anything, ask Mum." Leo left the bedroom. The last thought he had was about the girl in his dreams.

* * *

Ehh... well... not much to say about this chapter... except...

REVIEWS PLAWKZORZ. KTHZBAI. I LOVE YOU ALL.


	4. Surprise, surprise

"What?!?" roared the Dark Lord.

"I – It seems that one p – person has e – escaped K – K – Kerning City, my l – lord." the servant stuttered.

"ESCAPED!?" screamed the Dark Lord, standing up and knocking his chair over. "TELL ME YOU ARE LYING, YOU PIECE OF TRASH!"

"N – No, s – sir." said the servant, stumbling back in fear. "O – one person has e – escaped."

"Who is it?" breathed the Dark Lord in a dangerously low voice. "Who is it!?"

"S – Sen Yoon, m – my lord." the servant mumbled, avoiding eye contact with the Dark Lord.

"Sen Yoon, hm?" asked the Dark Lord. After a long silence, the Dark Lord commanded, "I see. Call Chung here!"

Chung instantly appeared in front of the Dark Lord in a puff of smoke.

"What is it, Dark Lord?" asked Chung, apparently annoyed. "I was in the middle of playing World of Warcraft."

"Screw that! One person has escaped Kerning. His name is Sen Yoon. Find him –"

"I know what I must do." said Chung calmly. "I will do it immediately, sir."

Chung dissapeared again.

* * *

The Shooting Star Chapter 4

Short Chapter, everyone!!!!

Sen was dreaming the dream again. Except this time, the girl wasn't crying. She was very sad and she was talking to Sen, but Sen could not understand what she was saying. Then the girl got up and a white light glowed from her. Sen did not know what she was doing, but he knew it was the wrong thing to do. He tried to get up and tell the girl to stop, but his body couldn't move, he tried to scream but he couldn't. Then a white light filled the room, and then the girl was gone.

Sen woke up suddenly, and he broke out in cold sweat. He knew he had the dream again, but he forgot what it was about this time. He could usually remember what had happened, and for a second, he forgot who he was, where he was, and what the hell he was doing here.

As Sen sat up, his memories flooded back in a second. He was in Leo's house. He was staying over. His city has been brain washed.

He looked around, and with slight amusement, saw Derek and Leo snoring away in their bunk bed. From the light that streemed through the window, Sen could see that it was around eleven o' clock.

Sen got up and stretched. He opened the door with a small creak.  
"Hello?" he said, looking around the living room. He went into the kitchen to find Reina, Leo's mom, cooking.

"Oh, good morning, Sen." said Reina, smiling warmly at him. Sen smiled back and sat down.  
"So what are we doing today?" Sen asked casually.

"Oh, well, Grendel has asked to see you four later. He has another mission for you, apparently." said Reina.

"Hmm," said Sen. "I see."

Sen ate his breakfast of eggs and toast. "Reina, I'm gonna go have a look around."  
"Hm? Okay. Come back in half a hour." said Reina. She waved to Sen has he walked out the door.

Sen walked around the pleasant city, enjoying the crisp morning air and the birds chirping. He glanced at his watch. He had time too kill.

Sen walked around, and suddenly he saw a arrow that was pointing to his left. The arrow seemed fishy; it was definetly a spell. He cautiously put his hand through it and Sen's hand passed right through the floating, neon arrow.

"What the...?" murmured Sen, waving his hand in and out of the arrow. He couldn't feel the arrow; it felt like air. Sen had now a great curiousity of what the arrow was pointing to.

Sen ran to where the arrow was pointing, and to his great surprise, another arrow appeared in front of him. He followed it, heart quickening with each step. He ran like the wind, until he reached a small, shabby, metal door. The building was covered in moss and plants, and it looked very old. The door had the words PLEASE DO NOT OPEN painted on it, but someone had crossed out the DO NOT, so it was just PLEASE OPEN. Sen reached one handle to the door and opened the door, having no idea what lay ahead.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Kerning...

"No!" screamed Terisa, kicking the gaurds that were holding her arms. "Let go of me! NOW!"  
"Come on!" growled one guard, dragging her along the hallway. "The Dark Lord asks of your presence! You must be honored!"  
"Honored?!" spat Terisa. "You Dark Lord is a piece of crap!"  
"Shut up, girl!" yelled the second guard, slapping Terisa. Terisa glared at them, but fell silent. She silently nicknamed them Ugly and Stupid.

"Come here, girl!" growled Ugly. Ugly shoved Terisa in a door, and Terisa fell on her knees.

"Hello," drawled a low voice. "I see... this is the user of god's power?"  
Terisa looked aorund the room, and her eyes rested on a man who was wearing ninja clothes. He looked dangerous, and Terisa's first impression was : Do not mess with him.  
"What do you want from me?" Terisa snapped. "I don't even know you!"  
"Hmm, a sharp tongue. Tsk, tsk. Do not speak to your superiors like that," scolded the Dark Lord, with a hint of amusement.  
"Hmph!" said Terisa, folding her legs up and proceeded to glare at the Dark Lord.

"Now," repeated the voice, more comforting this time. "I have heard you have the god's power."  
"God's power?" repeated Terisa, confused. "What?"  
"What I mean is the Heavenly Dragon Burst. You know what that is, don't you?" asked the Dark Lord, fixing his eyes on Terisa.

"_The _Heavenly Dragon Burst? Me? How could I have that power?" asked Terisa.

"Fine! Catch." said the Dark Lord, throwing her a staff with a tiny jeweled dragon on the top. It was encrusted with tiny diamonds, and it twinkled under the dim lighting.

"What's this?" asked Terisa, inspecting the staff with intrest. She could feel tiny waves of power radiating from the tip of the dragon, as if it knew something was happening. "It wields great power." she added, later.  
"I know," said the Dark Lord. "Now, do you have the Heavenly Dragon Burst?"  
Terisa remained silent, pretending to examine the staff. She had no idea what was the Heavenly Dragon Burst, except that it was a great power from the gods. That's what the rumors said, anyway.

"I see," said the Dark Lord. "If you are not willing to tell me, then I will see if you do have the power!" The Dark Lord then threw a giant star at her, going so fast it was a blur. Instinctively, Terisa held the staff in front of her face to cushion the impact. When the star was about to strike, though, a blinding light came from the dragon staff's mouth, and a second later, the star was gone. Terisa lay there, panting, not knowing what had happened. There was a small stream of blue smoke coming fmor the tip of the dragon's mouth.

"Excellent!" roared the Dark Lord. "Good show, Terisa! You _do_ have the Heavenly Dragon Burst! Excellent, excellent! Now you may go back to your cell." With that, the Dark Lord snapped his fingers, and Ugly and Stupid reappeared and dragged Terisa back to her cell. The Dark Lord took the staff away. Terisa was once again alone in her cold cell, wondering what the hell the Dark Lord wanted to do with her power.

Terisa flexed her fingers, feeling a glimmer of magic running through them.

_Hmm...

* * *

_

Hi everyone! This is chapter four! I can't believe I wrote so freakin' less. I wanted to write more, but then it'd be wayyyy too long. :P Haha. Well anyways, now you know Terisa has the Heavenly Dragon Burst! Ohhh! LOLOLOLOL. Anyways, Sen is about to discover something that will change his life forever.

MUAHAHAHAHAH NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE LONGER. HAPPY VALENTINES DAY ALL!


	5. Attacked!

As Sen cautiously opened the door, he felt a cold wave of air run through him. He felt himself shiver; a wave of excitement urged him on. He suddenly felt cold.

There was a tunnel before him. It seemed to go on forever. Sen touched the walls. They were cold and moist, and green moss curling around it. The tunnel seemed to have no oxygen in it, and Sen felt like there was a great force pressing against him.

"What's going on!?" Sen yelled. There was an echo. _Going on... going on... going on..._

Sen felt the door close behind him. There was a great slam, and Sen was in the darkness. For a moment, he thought he was dead, but then he moved and found out he was still in the tunnel. There was something wrong about this.

Suddenly, a bright green fire burst in front of him. Sen jumped up and yelled, but the green light beckoned him to go forward. Cautiously, Sen followed the green light. They walked in the tunnel for ten minutes until Sen saw a light in front of him. Sen ran to the light.

Sen burst out the tunnel and was blinded by the light. Sen shielded his eyes, and realized he was in a giant circular dome. It was ancient and had a holy feeling to it. There was a man in a hooded cloak in the middle of the room, with a crystal ball.

"Who are you?" asked Sen, walking to the man. The man did not respond, but he slid off his hood.

"Hello," said the man. Sen realized with a jolt that the man was not human. He had short, scrawly black hair and pointed ears. He was pale and his hand was not human-like. Sen stumbled back.

"Is something wrong, Sen?" drawled the man. "Nice to meet you... my name is Chung."

"C – Chung?" repeated Sen dumbly. "Who...?"

Chung shot him a glare; his eyes seemed to penetrate Sen's very soul. Sen felt daggers stabbing at him, but there were no knifes. Sen yelled out in pain.

"Spell! Knifes of Darkness." murmured Chung. He walked over to Sen, who was writhing on the floor in pain.

_So he's a magician, _Sen realized, _But what does he want with me?  
_"How unfortunate," murmured Chung, peering over Sen's body. "That such a talented hermit should be assassinated. You should have stayed in Kerning City..."

"K – Kerning?" coughed Sen, wincing at the pain. "Y – You were sent here to kill me?"

"My, my," exclaimed Chung, faking surprise. "I see you are smarter than you look."

"What d – do you want?" gasped Sen.

"I want you dead. It is my orders. No one must talk about what has happened to Kerning. Your friends shall die. The Dark Lord shall prevail." said Chung.

"The D – Dark Lord?!" said Sen. "No way! He's a good person – He's the one who taught me my skills, everything I know about thieves–"

"Shut up, boy!" snarled Chung. "You will die now. You do not know anything." Chung peered down at Sen, and took out a knife.

"Good bye, Sen." The knife plunged down.

* * *

"Where's Sen?" asked Joyce, looking around the room. "He should be here with us."  
"We apologize, Master Grendel." said Iris, bowing low.

"It is alright. You may rise." said Grendel.

"God," yawned Leo. "Where is that loser?"

"I don't know," said Joyce, but it sounded more like _Iunnooo._

Suddenly Grendel snapped awake. Joyce and Iris jolted, and Leo stood up.

"Did you feel that?" said Joyce quietly.

"Yeah." replied Leo.

"Sen," said Iris softly. "He's in trouble."

"Magic." said Grendels clear voice. "Great dark magic is in this city."

"We have to go!" yelled Leo. Suddenly, a picture appeared before them, fuzzy at first, but then came into view.

"_Hello Grendel... Leo, Iris, Joyce." _said Chung.

"What do you want!?" snarled Leo, "And what have you done with Sen?!"  
"_Your friend is dead." _replied Chung harshly. _"Your city is in great danger. We will destroy everything. You will die. Everyone who resists will die. You are next. I have cast a spell around you, and you cannot escape it. Even you, Grendel. Goodbye. We will take over Victoria Island. You will die." _The picture became blurry, and then disappeared altogether.

There was silence for about two seconds, and then Joyce gasped and pointed to the door. A shadow was creeping in through the crack of the door.

"To the center of the room! Here, my children!" roared Grendel, and Leo, Iris, and Joyce sprinted up on the platform to Grendel's magic circle. The darkness quickly swirled around them, and soon they could only see blackness. Joyce began to reach her hand out to touch the darkness, but Grendel sharply said, "Do not touch it! If you touch it, you will be sucked into the darkness!" Joyce quickly retreated her hand.

"W – What is this?" stammered Leo, inching closer to Grendel.

"A high black magic spell," murmured Grendel, walking around his magic circle. "I can't believe it! He can use the Darkness Spread spell... impossible! It was abandoned eons ago... where did he learn it?"

"M – Master Grendel?" piped up Iris. "A – Are we safe?"

"Yes," replied Grendel. "We are very safe inside my blue magic circle. It is the highest level of defensive spell; it would take a lot of magic to break it. But... this castle is also enchanted. I can't believe he knows this spell, yet alone break into my ground."

"Really? What is this?" stammered Joyce.

"This is called Darkness Spread, as I have said before. It is a great, cold darkness that swallows everything around it. Nothing will be left, not even a soul. It was abandoned eons ago because it was too dangerous. That was when I was still a child," said Grendel.

"Is there a way to escape?" asked Leo.  
"Possibly," Grendel said gravely. "But if we were to escape, I would have to dispell my magic circle. Then I would cast the spell immediately to kill the Darkness Spread, but it is very risky. There is only one chance to cast the spell, because it takes all of my MP. We would have only one chance or death."

"I see..." murmured Leo. "Let's do it."

"Do it?!" cried Joyce. "Are you crazy? If it doesn't work, we will all die!"

"But if we don't do it, we'll die either way," shrugged Leo.  
"It's all right," smiled Iris. "Believe in Master Grendel."

"Very well," said Grendel. With that, he began to chant words, and began to summon up great amounts of MP. The blue circle began to fade, and Iris, Leo and Joyce huddled together as the menancing darkness came closer. Grendel was now walking in circles around them, chanting strange words and suddenly yelled "RELEASE!"

The blue circle immediately faded, and for a second the darkness zoomed toward them, threatening, evil, and cold – then a bright golden light came out of Grendel's hand, the darkness evaporated, they were back in the room.

"Yes!" sighed Iris in relief. "I c – can't believe it! I thought we were dead for sure!"  
Grendel collapsed on the floor. Joyce and Iris quickly ran over to him.

"Are you okay, sir?!" said Joyce, panicking.

"Y – Yes..." said Grendel. "L – Let me see... my city..."

Leo opened the door, and everyone gasped. The city was burning, smoking, everything was destroyed. The trees were black from fire, and bodies lay across the branches. The once beautiful swaying branches were now ashes. Nothing moved except the dance of the ever-consuming flames.

"M – My city..." said Grendel, looking around as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "M – My beautiful... city."

Joyce was in shock. She couldn't believe what was happening. Her home. Her beautiful treetop home, in ashes, all gone –

"MOM!" screamed Leo, and he jumped off the branch and leaped to his home. Iris quickly followed. Joyce stayed behind to heal Master Grendel. She had a mix of emotions running around her; she trembled as she healed Grendel's wounds.

"M – Master," she stammered. "What happened?"

"This is the work," he gasped. "Of Chung. While he tried to assassinate us, he destroyed the city..."  
"No!" cried Joyce. "Our Ellania! Our beautiful Ellania. Don't tell me one man did this all!"  
"This is the power of our enemy," murmured Grendel. "Now, go, I must think for a while..."  
"Yes, sir..." bowed Joyce.

As she jumped into her once peaceful city, she thought, _How could this happen to me?

* * *

_

Nothing much to say.

Reviews please.

Yeah, I didn't want Ellania to burn down either, but don't leave shitty comments like :

_OMGOMGOMGOMGMOMGOMOGMGOG YOU KILLED ELLLANIA OMFG I HATE YOU OMFGOMFG YOU SUX GO DIEEE !!!11 NUB!!!!1111oneone_

Thanks. I appreciate it.

-wink-

;D


	6. Abducted

Terisa woke up suddenly. She sat up shakily, although not knowing why. Images of crying people, fire, smoke and the taste of despair flashed through her mind. She felt that she was jumping through the fire, reaching out to find something; to find someone.

_It was only a dream, _she said, trying to calm herself down. _It was only a dream...

* * *

_

Sen saw the knife plunge down, Sen realized if he didn't move, he would **die. **Sen urged his body to move, no matter what, at whatever cost, he couldn't die here.

Sen moved his body out of the way of the knife.

"Gah!" muttered Chung, as the knife got stuck in the ground. He ripped the knife out of the dirt. "I see, you broke free of my spell. Very good job. But it's all over now, don't try to run. It's useless..."

Sen staggered up slowly, panting. Breaking the spell took a lot of energy. He glanced at the door that was a few feet away – could he make it?

Sen glanced back at Chung, who was now forming a dark ball of energy between his hands. _That doesn't look so good, _thought Sen.

With that, Sen threw a star at Chung. Chung dodged it effortlessly and countinued to chant, except now he had his eyes on Sen.

Sen grimaced. This wasn't good, he couldn't escape. He dug into his pocket and fumbled around for something that could help him. His hand found a tiny smoke bomb. Sen knew this was his ticket out of here, although it would only work for about two seconds, it would release a thick purple smoke. It was the last one he had. When Sen purchased them at the one-dollar store, he would have no idea this thing would help save his life... if it worked, that is.

"Hey, Chung!" Sen yelled, waving his hands around. Chung looked at him, with slight amusement, then fired several small dark balls of energy at him. Sen dodged them all and watched them fly and hit the wall. The impact was amazing; the wall was now full of holes and was crumbling apart. Sen stared at Chung. Chung now completed his spell and cast a giant dark purple ball around Sen. Sen watched with silent shock as a dark purple ball formed instantly around him.

"Hey, you bastard! What the hell is this!?" yelled Sen, thumping the wall of the ball. It seemed to be made of plastic or something, but Sen knew it couldn't be plastic. It was magic.

Sen watched with horror as Chung summoned a picture of Iris, Joyce, Leo and Grendel on a fuzzy screen.

"Hello Grendel... Joyce, Iris, Leo." Chung stated with a cold smile.

"What do you want?!" snarled Leo, "And what have you done with Sen!?" Sen tried to yell to Leo, but Leo could not see or hear Sen from the backround.

"Your friend is dead_." _replied Chung harshly. _"_Your city is in great danger. We will destroy everything. You will die. Everyone who resists will die. You are next. I have cast a spell around you, and you cannot escape it. Even you, Grendel. Goodbye. We will take over Victoria Island. You will die." Chung snapped his fingers and the picture disappeared.

"I am not dead!" yelled Sen. "I'm not dead!"

"You will be dead," said Chung calmly. Chung was busy waving his arms around in several motions, chanting strange words again. This time though, there were comets coming down from the sky. Sen could see them through the giant window that was on top of the dome. Meteors rained down on Ellania, Sen stared in horror. Sen yelled and kicked the purple bubble, but it would not break. Sen watched with disgust and fear as people's houses went up in smoke, people crying and looking for the ones that were gone. Sen closed his eyes; he did not want to see any more.

With that done, Chung conjured a black sword out of the air, and walked toward Sen. Sen knew for Chung to stab him to death (that was what was going to happen, right!?), Chung had to destroy this dark purple circle.

He had one chance. He could break free and run for it once Chung broke the circle.

Chung seemed to be walking in slow motion, but Sen saw it from miles away. Chung mouthed several magic words and the purple circle faded. Sen got out his smoke bomb.

"Hasta la vista, Chung!" yelled Sen. Chung raised his sword and prepared to stab him – but –

Sen threw the smoke bomb and had a made dash for the door. A thick billowing purple smoke surrounded them all, and Sen could hear Chung stumbling around, Sen heard a clatter as the sword fell to the ground. Chung was looking for him. Sen groped around for the door, and he finally found it. He flew on the dark steps as fast as he could. Sen could hear Chung not far behind him, Sen ran as fast as his legs would take him. He could see the exit – he was almost there – nearly there – oh gosh, Chung is coming – the door is five steps away – three – two – one! Sen burst through the door and slammed it behind him.

The door faded away along with the building. It seemed like it was never there. Sen looked around, thinking something was wrong. It was smokey and there were fires. For a second, Sen thought that he was in a different city, that he had ended up in the wrong place. Sen realized this was the power of his enemy.

Sen jumped through the trees, choking on the smoke. He jumped even though his legs were shaky and numb, and it hurt each time he landed. He kept running forward, hoping for the best, fearing the worst.

"Reina!" he yelled, running into Leo's house. He stared at the wreckage. Almost everything was torn, battered, broken, burnt, it was horrifying. As Sen stepped over the smoldering pieces of who-knows-what, he heard Leo sobbing quietly.

"Leo?" Sen whispered, surprising himself with his quietness of his voice.

"M-Mum..." sniffed Leo. Leo's mom, Reina, was laying on the ground, unmoving. Sen instantly feared the worst, a great lump formed in his throat and he couldn't talk. "Hey Sen... you're alive?" Leo murmured.

"You thought I could die, you asshole?" replied Sen.

"Yeah... I knew you weren't dead." said Leo softly.

"R – Reina?" Sen murmured, laying next to the body. Sen extended one shaky hand and softly touched Reina's hand, which was icy cold in the burning heat.

There was a cold silence that filled the room, nothing moved or made a noise except the occasional cackle of the flames. Sen felt hot tears run down his face.

"Hey, Leo, man." whispered Sen. "I... I'm... gonna..."

"It's okay," whispered Leo. "I understand... Go find Derek for me, will you...?"

"Yeah man," replied Sen weakly. Sen wiped his nose and choked back some tears. "I... I will."

Sen left Leo and Reina alone, stepping into the smoky, confusing place.

Joyce and Iris's families were okay, there were all injured in some way, cursed, broken arm, unconcious. At least no one died. Sen went to visit Joyce first.

"Joyce?" asked Sen. "Where'd Derek disappear off to?"

"Derek?" said Joyce blankly. They were silent for a few moments, then Joyce repeated, "Oh, Derek..."

"Uhm, yeah, Derek." said Sen, waving his hand in front of Joyce's face. Joyce stumbled back.

"I haven't seen Derek," mumbled Joyce. "I think he's with Master Grendel."

"Joyce?" asked a voice. Iris came in view, and she looked silently at Joyce. "Joyce?" she repeated.

"Huh?" asked Joyce, almost automatically. "Whatizzit, Iris?"

"Are you okay? Your mom seems worried."  
"I'm fine."  
"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine!" yelled Joyce, stomping away. Iris looked a little scared as she followed Joyce.

"Joyce?! Hey, come back here!!" called Iris's voice.

Sen shook his head. Joyce was in denial; she couldn't believe what had happened. Iris was worried about everyone, and she was really, really scared. Not the best scenario.

_Now, time to find Derek, _thought Sen hopefully.

Sen went to the ancient castle. As he opened the door, he knew immediately that something was wrong. Grendel wasn't there, and, Derek wasn't there either.

"Derek? Master Grendel?" called Sen. He called even though he knew they would never come. Sen found a piece of paper on the floor. He shakily extended one hand and grabbed it. In messy, scrawled writing:

_Hello Sen,_

_If you want Master Grendel back, meet me at Kerning on June 18__th__, at 1 PM._

_I will expect you there... if you aren't, your precious master will die._

_From The Master of the Night_

Sen examined the note. Even though they were talking about Grendel, it had said nothing about Derek. Was Derek taken with them? Probably. He was with Grendel at the moment, so he was probably taken with them. And maybe he wasn't mentioned because he was too insignificant for mention. And who exactly was 'Master of the Night', too? He knew it was basically another name for 'The Dark Lord', but the Dark Lord would never use such a corny name like that. Why June 18th, too? It was a week away...

Sen clenched the piece of paper and walked out of the door.

He was looking for answers, but all he had was more questions...

* * *

I STRIKE AGAIN! WAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAA!!!

Anyways, I'm thinkin' bout doing a popularity poll. I'm not sure how long I should make it since only like five people read this anyways... ahaha. To submit a vote, please PM (private message) me or... you can add it to you review. Reviews please! –bows- Thank you! I love you guys. You're the bomb. Maybe I'll annonunce the results in like... 3 / 4 four chapters, if I even write that much. ROFLS.

And I still can't believe anyone would read this crap. It comes out from boredom... because there's nothing better to do.

Now if you'll excuse me, I spent my afternoon writing this. I still have two pages of super hard algebra. WAHAHAHAHAHA! Damn, I think I ate too much sugar. Bye! Thanks for letting me waste your time. :D


	7. Master of the Night

Chapter 7

Short chapter, again! Sorry!!!

"What?" asked the Dark Lord.

"I am sorry to inform you on this," replied Chung. "Sen has escaped. But there is worse news other than that stupid boy,"

"What is it?" replied the Dark Lord, looking slightly irritated.

"Terisa," Chung said slowly. "Is indeed a user of the Heavenly Dragon Burst. However, activating her powers with the staff is not enough. You will need something else to magnify and use it for our purpose."

"And what might that be?" asked the Dark Lord.

"A sacred stone." replied Chung. "The Goddess's Sapphire. It is that of legend, but however, you can trace it through history. It can magnify the Heavenly Dragon Burst's power."

"Go on," said the Dark Lord. "Tell me how to use it. How to find it...?"  
"Well, yes, that is the problem," said Chung nervously. "It is currently in the hands of a priestess that lives deep in the dungeon. People who have wandered that far in the dungeon have often become lost. No one has ever found their way out. Plus, this priestess is very strong; even if you do find her, she will never give you the stone and will probably kill you. She is blind, but that only gives her more power."

"I see. A priestess in the deep dungeon." the Dark Lord closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment. "I know. This is what we do. We will take the Master of Ellinia. Get Sen to come here. Use our secret agent. Let Sen find the Goddess's Sapphire at all costs. We will use Sen for our dirty work. He is powerful; he will get his hands on it. After he gets the stone, kill him. But for now, watch Sen's every move."

Chung just stared at him.

"What are you waiting for?" snarled the Dark Lord. "Get moving!"

* * *

"What?!" cried Iris in horror. "Master Grendel is missing...!?"

"Yes," replied Sen solemnly. "He... was not there. I cannot find him anywhere."  
"No!" repeated Iris. She buried her face in her hands. "Master Grendel cannot be missing!"

"Sorry, Iris," said Sen. He trembled as he spoke. Though he only known the old great wizard for a few days, he had grown fond of the old man.

"And Derek?!" interrupted Joyce. "What happened to Derek?"

"He's gone too," said Sen lamely. "He... wasn't there, either."

"No!" shouted Joyce. "How can Derek be gone too? Someone must have abducted them! This can't be happening!"

After Sen had told Reina, she sat down on the couch looking pale and silent.

"Derek," she murmured, speaking the name of her first son over and over. "My dear Derek, where are you?"

After telling his friends, Sen told the broken town that Master Grendel had disappeared. The town replied in cries of anguish and horror. The hugged each other a wept.

"What now?" asked Sen. "Is there some kind of replacement person in case Grendel is gone?"

"Oh, yes, actually," replied Leo smugly. "There is."  
A girl with dark silky black hair now sat in Grendel's place. She looked serious and solemn. Her piercing blue eyes sparkled with anger and fury as she was told that Grendel had been abducted.

"This is indeed a tragedy," she said in a loud clear voice. "This cannot countinue. Our dear Master has protected us from harm. We will now return the favor." The crowd cheered.

"Who is she?" asked Sen after she was done speaking.

"Oh, her?" said Iris with a sigh of admiration. "Oh, her. Her name is Rose. She's my complete idol! She's so awesome!"

"Mm," said Sen, not really paying attention to Iris.

"She's my girlfriend," said Leo proudly. Sen gawked at Leo, wondering how the hell this dumb person could get such a girl. Sen realized that his mouth must have been open and that his face expressed complete surprise, because Leo shot him a look that said plainly said _Whatcha lookin at, bub?!_

"Rose," said Sen with the air of authority. "I have a favor to ask of you."  
"What is it?" she snapped. "I'm busy right now – organizing the party to find Master Grendel –!" at this point, her eyes blurred with tears from hearing her old Master's name – "... and the town is in complete ruin! Many people are left without homes...!"  
"Okay, okay, sheesh, calm down," muttered Sen.

"Rose?" asked Leo, sitting down next to her. "I need to ask you something."

"What is it, Leo?" replied Rose sweetly.

"Sen and I have decided to find Grendel by ourselves." Leo blurted out. "Please let us go, Rose. This is something we have to do, and I have to get my brother back."

"By yourself!?" cried Rose, standing up and knocking her chair over. "No! I cannot allow that."  
"Yes you can!" roared Leo with such ferocity that Rose stared at him in surprise. Somewhat hurt, she sat back down slowly. Leo clenched his fists until they turned white.

"Tell me why," she said softly.

"They..." Leo choked out. "They took my brother,"

"Derek," murmured Rose. "I see."  
"They took our master, too. While I go save our Master, we will go find my brother also."

"Hmm," said Rose softly, as if speaking to herself. "But, it is not safe with you two alone."

"Yes, we will be safe!" replied Leo fiercely. "Sen is a hermit! I'm a chief bandit. We'll be fine."

"Hermit?" Rose said, her eyes turning to look at Sen for a few moments. After several minutes of awkward silence, Rose nodded. "I understand. You may go. Your mission starts tomorrow. June 18th is not far away."

"Thank you," Sen said curtly, walking out with Leo. Leo and Sen gave each other a look of solemn mutual agreement. They walked home in silence.

* * *

Sen felt himself being shook as Leo said, "Time to go!"

Sen woke up groggily and sat up slowly. Dawn was here.

"Time to go to Kerning," whispered Leo. Leo mentioned for Sen to follow him. Sen rubbed his eyes and yawned. He dressed and grabbed his backpack. The followed Leo outside.

They both took a breath of crisp morning air. They started to climb down the ropes of Ellinia.

They didn't stop walking for several hours. By the end of the fourth hour, Sen's legs were numb.

"Leo," croaked Sen in a hoarse voice. "Let's stop."

Leo stopped abruptly and stared at Sen. "No. We're almost there. One mile to go."  
"Oh, fine." muttered Sen. He could almost smell the familiar fumes of Kerning.

About twenty minutes later, Kerning City came into view.

"The Master of the Night should be in front of Kerning," said Leo.

They stood there, silent. Sen watched his city with a pang of sadness in his heart. His old, once proud city was silent. The only sounds were the crows cawing. The people were brainwashed. They didn't move unless they were told to. Sen gazed at his city sadly.

A man in a black cloak suddenly appeared in front of them. He must have teleported or moved with amazing speed; they didn't see him there a few seconds earlier.

"Are you the Master of the Night?" said Leo with hatred in his voice.

"Yes," the dark figure in the cloak replied.  
Sen stared at the figure. There was something familiar about his voice.

"If you want your Master Grendel back," he said. "You must get the Goddess's Sapphire. It is in a priestess's hands in the deep dungeon." The Master of the Night held up a picture of a blue stone, with a strange marking on it. He hid it back in his cloak. "You have one month to find it." he said.

"Give us our Master or we'll beat the shit out of you," snarled Leo.

"Not until you give us the stone," replied the Master of the Night. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to do." The Master of the Night turned around and began walking to Kerning.  
"Where is my brother?" cried Leo, tears streaming down his face. "What have you done to him?"

The figure stopped walking. He paused.

Leo took this chance to run up to the Master of the Night and tore off his hood.

As the hood fell to the floor, his face was revealed. Sen couldn't breath; he couldn't believe that it was him. Leo stumbled back and fell on the ground. Little clouds of dirt flew up. Leo's face was clouded with hurt and surprise as he cried the Master of the Night's true name.

"_Derek_?!"

* * *

Uhm yah...

Sorry for those Derek fangirls...!!!

Well. Reviews please... not much to talk about in this chapter. It's rather short and stuff.

Thanks for all the support I've been getting! It really helps. :D Thank you, those who have been giving me critism. I listen to everything you say and every single review! I read every single one; they're my treasures. –sparkly eyes-

I never believed that this story would get this far as to Chapter Seven. (my old story never got finished; it only got to chapter eight.) I plan to keep on writing this story. It's gonna be a lot of fun. Thank you.


End file.
